US embassy cable - 05GABORONE434

C O N F I D E N T I A L GABORONE 000434 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPT FOR AF/S DIFFILY 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/18/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, BC, ZI, SADC 
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE TO SADC CAPITALS ON EVE OF ZIMBABWE 
ELECTIONS: GOB REACTION 
 
REF: STATE 47945 
 
Classified By: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES LOIS A. AROIAN FOR REASONS 1.5 (B) AND 
 (D) 
 
1.  (C) Ambassador Huggins delivered demarche to Botswana's 
Permanent Secretary 
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International 
Cooperation, Mr. Ernest 
Mpofu, on March 18.  Mpofu's response was that he, too, hoped 
for free and fair 
elections in Zimbabwe.  He was encouraged, he said, by the 
fact that thus far, 
the level of pre-election violence was significantly lower 
than in the run-up 
to the previous elections, and pleasantly surprised by the 
court decision in 
favor of the "Daily News". But he shrugged off the role of 
equal access by the 
opposition to the Zimbabwe media, noting "people have no 
money to buy 
newspapers", and despairing of the GOZ broadcast media, which 
would inevitably 
favor ZANU-PF. 
 
2. (C) Mpofu was equivocal on the absence of an invitation to 
the 
SADC-Parliamentary Forum as observers, and quickly went on to 
relate that 
Botswana will send a delegation of observers, none of whom 
will be GOB civil 
servants. When asked if, on the delegation's return, it could 
hold a briefing 
session for the diplomatic community, Mpofu went into 
standard fall-back 
Botswana position mode, i.e., reciting once again that 
Botswana will be 
considered on the side of the West, and against Zimbabwe, if 
it does so.  He 
continued with the set piece that EmbOffs have heard for the 
past years: 
Botswana cannot afford to antagonize its neighbor; Mugabe, in 
the region, is 
still a comrade from the liberation struggle, no one said 
anything about the 
1983 Matabeleland massacres but the West was up in arms when 
white farmers were 
expropriated, and: SADC cannot confront ZANU-Pf head-on. 
 
3. (C) Ambassador Huggins pressed the issue that Zimbabwe's 
continuing crisis 
is dragging down the entire region.  Mpofu agreed.  "We can 
only advise Mugabe, 
as a colleague, that this cannot continue," he said.  He 
concluded by 
expressing his hope that in the March 31 election, the 
Zimbabwean people's 
voice would be heard. 
AROIAN 
Aroian 
 
 
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